HB 118: "An Act relating to state identifications and driver's licenses for persons in the custody of the Department of Corrections; relating to the duties of the commissioner of corrections; relating to living conditions for prisoners; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 118 01 "An Act relating to state identifications and driver's licenses for persons in the custody 02 of the Department of Corrections; relating to the duties of the commissioner of 03 corrections; relating to living conditions for prisoners; and providing for an effective 04 date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 18.65.310 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 07 (s) Upon request, the department shall mail a card issued under (a) of this 08 section to a Department of Corrections address provided by an applicant who is 09 serving an active term of imprisonment exceeding 120 days. 10 * Sec. 2. AS 28.15.101 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 11 (e) Upon request, the department shall mail a driver's license renewed under 12 (c) of this section to a Department of Corrections address provided by a licensee who 13 is serving an active term of imprisonment exceeding 120 days. 14 * Sec. 3. AS 33.30.011(a) is amended to read:
01 (a) The commissioner shall 02 (1) establish, maintain, operate, and control correctional facilities 03 suitable for the custody, care, and discipline of persons charged or convicted of 04 offenses against the state or held under authority of state law; each correctional facility 05 operated by the state shall be established, maintained, operated, and controlled in a 06 manner that is consistent with AS 33.30.015; 07 (2) classify prisoners; 08 (3) for persons committed to the custody of the commissioner, 09 establish programs, including furlough programs that are reasonably calculated to 10 (A) protect the public and the victims of crimes committed by 11 prisoners; 12 (B) maintain health; 13 (C) create or improve occupational skills; 14 (D) enhance educational qualifications; 15 (E) support court-ordered restitution; and 16 (F) otherwise provide for the rehabilitation and reformation of 17 prisoners, facilitating their reintegration into society; 18 (4) provide necessary 19 (A) medical services for prisoners in correctional facilities or 20 who are committed by a court to the custody of the commissioner, including 21 examinations for communicable and infectious diseases; 22 (B) psychological or psychiatric treatment if a physician or 23 other health care provider, exercising ordinary skill and care at the time of 24 observation, concludes that 25 (i) a prisoner exhibits symptoms of a serious disease or 26 injury that is curable or may be substantially alleviated; and 27 (ii) the potential for harm to the prisoner by reason of 28 delay or denial of care is substantial; and 29 (C) assessment or screening of the risks and needs of offenders 30 who may be vulnerable to harm, exploitation, or recidivism as a result of fetal 31 alcohol syndrome, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, or another brain-based
01 disorder; 02 (5) establish minimum standards for sex offender treatment programs 03 offered to persons who are committed to the custody of the commissioner; 04 (6) provide for fingerprinting in correctional facilities in accordance 05 with AS 12.80.060; 06 (7) establish a program to conduct assessments of the risks and needs 07 of offenders sentenced to serve a term of incarceration of 90 days or more; the 08 program must include a requirement for an assessment before a prisoner's release on 09 parole, furlough, or electronic monitoring from a correctional facility; 10 (8) establish a procedure that provides for each prisoner required to 11 serve an active term of imprisonment of 90 days or more a written case plan that 12 (A) takes effect and is provided to the prisoner within 90 days 13 after sentencing; 14 (B) is based on the results of the assessment of the prisoner's 15 risks and needs under (7) of this subsection; 16 (C) includes a requirement to follow the rules of the institution; 17 (D) is modified when necessary for changes in classification, 18 housing status, medical or mental health, and resource availability; 19 (E) includes participation in programming that addresses the 20 needs identified in the assessment; 21 (9) establish a program to begin reentry planning with each prisoner 22 serving an active term of imprisonment of 90 days or more; reentry planning must 23 begin at least 90 days before release on furlough or probation or parole; the reentry 24 program must include 25 (A) a written reentry plan for each prisoner completed upon 26 release on furlough or probation or parole that includes information on the 27 prisoner's proposed 28 (i) residence; 29 (ii) employment or alternative means of support; 30 (iii) treatment options; 31 (iv) counseling services;
01 (v) education or job training services; 02 (B) any other requirements for successful transition back to the 03 community, including electronic monitoring or furlough for the period between 04 a scheduled parole hearing and parole eligibility; 05 (C) coordination with the Department of Labor and Workforce 06 Development to provide access, after release, to job training and employment 07 assistance; and 08 (D) coordination with community reentry coalitions or other 09 providers of reentry services if available; 10 (10) for offenders under electronic monitoring, establish 11 (A) minimum standards for electronic monitoring, which may 12 include the requirement of active, real-time monitoring using global 13 positioning systems; and 14 (B) procedures for oversight and approving electronic 15 monitoring programs and systems provided by private contractors; 16 (11) assist a prisoner in obtaining a valid state identification card if the 17 prisoner does not have a valid state identification card before the prisoner's release; if 18 a prisoner is serving an active term of imprisonment exceeding 120 days, the 19 commissioner shall make a good faith effort, in consultation with the 20 commissioner of administration, to ensure the prisoner has a state identification 21 card upon the prisoner's release; the department shall pay the application fee for the 22 identification card; and 23 (12) provide to the legislature, by electronic means, by January 10 24 preceding the first regular session of each legislature, a report summarizing the 25 findings and results of the program established under (7) of this subsection; the report 26 must include 27 (A) the number of prisoners who were provided with written 28 case plans under (8) of this subsection; 29 (B) the number of written case plans under (8) of this 30 subsection initiated within the preceding year; and 31 (C) the number of written case plans under (8) of this
01 subsection that were updated in the preceding year. 02 * Sec. 4. AS 33.30.015(a) is amended to read: 03 (a) The commissioner may not 04 (1) make per capita expenditures for food for prisoners in a state 05 correctional facility operated by the state that exceed 90 percent of per capita 06 expenditures for food that is available to enlisted personnel in the United States Army 07 stationed in the state; 08 (2) provide, in a state correctional facility operated by the state, 09 (A) living quarters for a prisoner into which the view is 10 obstructed; however, the commissioner is not required to renovate a facility to 11 comply with this subparagraph if the facility is being used as a correctional 12 facility on August 27, 1997, or if the facility was already built before being 13 acquired by the department; 14 (B) equipment or facilities for publishing or broadcasting 15 material the content of which is not subject to prior approval by the department 16 as consistent with keeping order in the institution and prisoner discipline; 17 (C) cable television service other than a level of basic cable 18 television service that is available as a substitute for services that are broadcast 19 to the public in the community in which a correctional facility is located; 20 (3) allow a prisoner held in a state correctional facility operated by the 21 state to 22 (A) possess in the prisoner's cell a cassette tape player or 23 recorder, a video cassette recorder (VCR), or a [COMPUTER OR] modem of 24 any kind; 25 (B) view movies rated "R," "X," or "NC-17"; 26 (C) possess printed or photographic material that 27 (i) is obscene as defined by the commissioner in 28 regulation; 29 (ii) could reasonably be expected to incite racial, ethnic, 30 or religious hatred that is detrimental to the security, good order, or 31 discipline of the institution or violence;
01 (iii) could reasonably be expected to aid in an escape or 02 in the theft or destruction of property; 03 (iv) describes procedures for brewing alcoholic 04 beverages or for manufacturing controlled substances, weapons, or 05 explosives; or 06 (v) could reasonably be expected to facilitate criminal 07 activity or a violation of institution rules; 08 (D) receive instruction in person, or by broadcast medium, or 09 engage in boxing, wrestling, judo, karate, or other martial art or in any activity 10 that, in the commissioner's discretion, would facilitate violent behavior; 11 (E) possess or have access to equipment for use in the activities 12 listed in (D) of this paragraph; 13 (F) possess or have access to free weights; 14 (G) possess in the prisoner's cell a coffee pot, hot plate, 15 appliance or heating element for food preparation, or more than three electrical 16 appliances of any kind; 17 (H) possess or appear in a state of dress, hygiene, grooming, or 18 appearance other than as permitted as uniform or standard in the correctional 19 facility; 20 (I) use a computer other than those approved by the 21 correctional facility; the use of a computer under this subparagraph may be 22 approved to facilitate the prisoner's rehabilitation or the prisoner's 23 compliance with a reentry plan or case plan developed under 24 AS 33.30.011, including use related to [ONLY AS PART OF THE 25 PRISONER'S] employment, education, [OR] vocational training, access to 26 legal reference materials, visitation, or health care [AND MAY NOT BE 27 USED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE]; 28 (J) smoke or use tobacco products of any kind. 29 * Sec. 5. AS 33.30.095(b) is amended to read: 30 (b) The program established under (a) of this section must include 31 (1) instruction on
01 [(A) OBTAINING STATE IDENTIFICATION; 02 (B)] community resources available for housing, employment, 03 and treatment; 04 (2) an individualized reentry plan under AS 33.30.011(a)(9) for the 05 prisoner; 06 (3) probation and parole orientation, if appropriate; and 07 (4) a partnership with one or more nonprofit organizations to allow 08 access to a prisoner before the prisoner's discharge, release, or furlough to assist the 09 prisoner with the prisoner's application for Medicaid, social security benefits, public 10 assistance under AS 47.25, and a state identification card or driver's license and 11 provide other programs to assist the prisoner's transition into the community, promote 12 rehabilitation, and reduce recidivism. 13 * Sec. 6. This Act takes effect January 1, 2022.